Wedding Invitations

Military Wedding Invitation Wording

The wording used for the weddings involving members of the armed services, such as the United States Marine Corps, United States Army, the United States Navy or the United States Air Force, is the same as that for civilians, the main difference being the use of titles. For examples, if the civilians use the common “Mrs.” and “Mr.” or “Doctor”, the military personnel use their military titles, which should not be abbreviated, adding sometimes their branch of service or their rank. Junior officers don’t use their titles in front of their names, neither civilian nor military, unless they are listed with their wives. If the junior officers are mentioned alone, their titles usually appear before the name of their branch of service, on the second line. The same goes for the officer’s name.




If an officer has a rank of captain or an even higher one, their military titles are used in front of the names. If their name is used with the name of his or her spouse, the branch of service is not mentioned; that usually happens only if the name is mentioned alone, the title and the branch of service are written on a separate line, right beneath their name. The First and Second Lieutenants used their titles, including the first and second, even if they are in the Army, Air Force or Marines. Even after retiring, the high-ranking officers continue to use their titles; if their name is mentioned with that of the wife, their title or designation are not used. Below I’ve listed some examples, just to know exactly what to choose for your wedding invitations.

In the situation when the parents are married, here are the following military wording samples: if the father is an officer “Colonel and Mrs. John Hopkins”, if the father is a junior officer “Lieutenant and Mrs. John Hopkins”, if the father is a retired officer “General and Mrs. John Hopkins”, if the father is an enlisted man or a noncommissioned officer “Mr. and Mrs. John Hopkins”, if the mother is an officer “Mr. or Mrs. John Hopkins” or “Major Susan Brandon Hopkins, (and right below you write) United States Air Force and Mrs. John Hopkins”.
If both parents are officers, the wording would be like this: “Colonel and Mrs. John Hopkins” or “Captain Susan Brandon Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force, and Colonel John Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force”. If the parents have the same military rank, the wording would be: “Colonel and Mrs. John Hopkins”, “The Colonels Hopkins” or “Colonel Susan Brandon Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force, and Colonel John Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force”.
If the parents are divorced and the father has a military title, the wordings would be: “Mrs. Susan Brandon and Colonel John Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force” if the father is an officer; “Mrs. Susan Brandon and John Hopkins, (below) First Lieutenant, United States Air Force” if the father is a junior officer, “Mrs. Susan Brandon and Colonel John Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force, Retired” if the father is a retired officer, and “Mrs. Susan Brandon and John Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force” if the father is an enlisted man or a noncommissioned officer.
If the mother has the military rank the working would look something like this: “Captain Susan Brandon, (below) United States Air Force and Mr. John Hopkins”.
If the bride is a junior officer, the wording is: “Jane Hopkins, (below) Ensign, United States Navy”; if she is an officer: “Commander Jane Hopkins, (below) United States Army”; is she is an enlisted woman or noncommissioned officer: “Jane Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force”.

When it comes to the groom and his military ranks, the wording is: “Mark Stone, (below) First Lieutenant, United States Marine Corps” if he is a junior officer, “Major Mark Stone, (below) United States Marine Corps” if he is an officer, and “Mark Stone, (below) United States Marine Corps” if he is a noncommissioned officer or enlisted man.
Here is complete military wording example you can use on your wedding invitations:
“Mrs. Susan Brandon and Colonel John Hopkins, (below) United States Air Force,
request the honor of your presence at the marriage of their daughter, Jane Hopkins
to Major Mark Stone, (below) United States Marine Corps, son of Mr. and Mrs. Steven Stone, on Sunday, the sixth of November, two thousand and eleven, at six o’clock in the evening, St. Nicholas’s Church, New Orleans, Louisiana. Reception to follow.”